Chef

Craig Koketsu

New York

About Craig Koketsu

Chef Koketsu was selected to create the culinary concept and menus of Quality Meats, which he executed with a great respect for classic dishes which were transformed by his creativity. He created the culinary direction of Quality Branded’s award-winning Park Avenue (Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring), Quality Italian, Quality Eats and Quality Meats. New York Magazine and Esquire Magazine have named him among New York’s top up-and-coming chefs.

Accolades

Where I Go Out

"These are really simple: an oyster in a half-shell topped with seasoned sticky rice and tartar sauce. They’re baked until the rice gets crispy on the outside. The rice also absorbs the flavor from the oyster liquor. These deep-fried breaded oysters almost remind me of paella."

"The food at Casa is always so impeccably prepared, and all from a kitchen that’s not much larger than a broom closet. Their version of feijoada—a black bean stew with different braised meats (corned beef, bacon, and sausage)—comes with garlicky rice, flash-seared collard greens, orange segments, a tomato and onion salsa, and farofa (toasted manioc flour). I just dump the beans over the rice and mix everything together. Make sure to ask for the jalapeño sauce, which gives it a nice kick of heat."

"Dan Kluger coaxes big flavors out of his products. This sundae makes up for the lightness of the rest of the menu. It’s salted caramel ice cream with candied peanuts, popcorn, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream. The salt and burnt sugar flavor in the ice cream keep the dessert from being too cloyingly sweet, and the textural contrast of the peanuts and popcorn also keep your mouth interested throughout the entire duration of the dessert, which, in my case, is never very long."

"As a Californian, Dungeness crab is one of the products I miss having nearby. When I tasted chef Hung Huynh’s spaghetti, the flavors brought me back home. The perfectly cooked pasta and the flying fish roe are perfect complements to the crab."

"Ridiculous. Really. I don’t even know what’s inside of them because I inhale them before I know it. The wrapper is crispy on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside, and the pastrami is hot and melting. The mustard sauce is also really good, but not necessarily necessary."

"This place is right next door to my wife’s boutique. Whenever the smell of these rolls wafts over into her store, I immediately run to get one hot out of the oven. An incredibly flaky pastry surrounding a rich and savory pork sausage, this is what a pig-in-a-blanket aspires to be."